[ExactlyMyPoint]

Here is another "what if" situation.

You are in a situation with a loved one. Some one who you would go to jail and/or die for. (For the ease of writing this, I am going to say it is your wife/girlfriend/daughter or any one else of the female gender. It could just as easily be a male.) Someone is about to seriously hurt and/or kill her. You are too far away to be of any physical assistance so there is NO way you can get within close enough proximity to physical stop this guy. You are carrying. The only shot you have is to shoot the perp in the back, but your loved one is directly in front of him. There is a risk that the bullet would penetrate the perp and hit your loved one.

What do you do?

 

[Thanis]

If the BG was going to cause certain death, I'll take the shot. However, you can't tell the difference in most cases.

I practice long distance shooting from time to time, I don't really consider it for SD, at those ranges. I'm a good, but not great shot.

Best I can say if there is a possibility I would shoot. Really not a situation I know how to prepare for.

 

[msgt/ret]

Tough call, I would probably scream, shout, throw something or anything to distract the perp and give my SO a chance to get out of the line of fire before taking a shot. I would hope the distraction and the fact that there is someone else to deal with may cause the perp to end the assault.

 

[nedrgr21]

(from other threads) tell SO to drop and take the shot. I've heard most hollowpoints won't have the energy to seriously hurt a second person after going thru the first body. If they'd be dead anyway, nothing to lose. Practice at 50 yds, it's a real eye opener/confidence builder.

 

[Logan5]

I would get as close as I could, and take the shot if a loved one death was going to occur.
If someone was about was about to “seriously hurt” a loved one, I would get their attention that I was coming armed. If the attack didn’t stop when I got nearby, I would stop the attack one way or the hard way.

 

[larefugee]

I'd yell "STOP OR I'LL SHOOT!" and be ready to shoot immediately if the situation still looked grave by the time I had my gun out and acquired a sight picture. The verbal command would be enough to make him back down for fear of getting shot or it could give my SO a chance to react.

It's situations like that where one would be thankful for all the range time they spent on marksmanship. Imagine the training that sky marshals have to go through to be confident in their ability to make accurate shots on a crowded airplane!

 

[alexcantslee]

Kidnapping

I think the OP is really not askin so much about how we would respond to a long distance threat as much as the choice we would make is A, we needed to shoot, and B, the attacker was in front of the one we where trying to protect, do you take a possible risk of harming your loved one in an effort to save their life.


Ive thought about this particular situation. I hadnt given it much thought until Limatunes mentioned it. Perhaps a situation where someone has grabbed your child and running towards a car, building, etc...

I say carry good hollow points and take the shot. Ive thought long and hard about that particular situation since I have now have a child and have decided I trust my aim and the bullet to not fully penetrate a BG more than I trust some filthy kidnapper to not harm my child. Nothing is certain of course and its risky either way and this is DEFINITELY not a a situation I want to have happen, but if it did Im going to default to my practice

That said, I dont think this is really something that will come up but if it does, I will take that shot.

Alex!

 

[SteveinNEPA]

Risk of shoot-through and injuring my loved one V. Risk of the BG KILLING my loved one - I'll TAKE the shot,depending on where my loved one is positioned in relation to the perp,that tells me where to shoot the perp (Head,Upper torso,Lower Torso etc)
I personally would not try distracting the perp as this person is already HARMING my loved one,I'm not taking the chance of them wounding or killing them by screaming for them to stop or throwing something at them.

This scenario is the reason why you invest in GOOD RELIABLE HOLLOW POINTS and train for ALL scenarios that you may encounter in defensive use of a firearm.

-Steve

 

[Pikachu711]

Since I carry hollow points I would feel comfortable taking "the shot." I would get as close as possible before making the shot all the same. If I carried a different type ammo (JHP) ammo I would be concerned about the loved one just beyond the BG.

Good question. Thanks for posting it. I never considered this scenario before at all.

 

[JohnD13]

I know I would take the shot if my loved one was already at risk.
Hollow point ammo probably would not over penetrate, but this does present a good argument for frangible ammo like the Glaser Safety bullets.

 

[kellyII]

First and formost, there is nothing more important than FAMILY im taking the shot as soon as a clear line of sight appears.. If the BG get the family member into the car or away from you who know what he/she will do. At that point you have lost what little control you may have had.. Practice practice and more practice, one cannot shoot enough, there is always room for improvment and a never ending amount of scenarios......

 

[grandma4]

Take the shot.

 

[gottabkiddin]

I would put a round in the his lower body to cause a reflex reaction and allow my loved one a chance to evade while I then place several more rounds in the perp's worthless bone bag body.:blink:

But, that's just me.:image035:

 

[Rugergirl]

If it were my daughter we were talking about here, I doubt that the scenario could ever happen. I just don't let her get that far away from me in public places. About 12 feet is the limit and she knows it.
But I'll play along, if somebody ever grabbed her and tried to get her away from me, they would be dead before they traveled 6 feet. Where I would aim to take the shot would depend on the BG's body postion and hers, but he wouldn't get far.
The best way to avoid being in that situation is good SA, she and I both practice it, and I watch her when we are in public, she keeps her head up eyes open and looks around at other people, just like Mom does.

 

[Rcher]

In keeping with your scenario ...

I would quickly close the distance between me and the BG as much as possible before alerting him to my presence. I would then yell "HEY .. STOP" (or whatever I could) to get his attention. At this point, I would expect my loved one to try to escape if possible. This may be one of the only situations that I would shoot to wound, maybe in the buttocks. If the bullet passed through, assuming they are both standing, it shouldnt be life threatening to my loved one. A .45 in the butt will definitely get his attention. Now I'm clear to shoot again if necessary.

These scenario's are hard. In the field, you only have micro seconds to make decisions. Sitting here in my comfy chair, I have plenty of time to think about it and change my mind 20 times.

 

[jon]

What if the perp uses your SO as a shield and is backing away to a car/ building/ escape route of some sort ?
To the people who would shoot in the scenario, would you still take the risk knowing that the perp could maneuver your loved one into direct line of fire?

 

[Dal1Celt]

Take the shot and Pray the Hydra-Shok hits the BG and does not penetrate further then the BG!

 

[gottabkiddin]

What if the perp uses your SO as a shield and is backing away to a car/ building/ escape route of some sort ?
To the people who would shoot in the scenario, would you still take the risk knowing that the perp could maneuver your loved one into direct line of fire?

I'll answer this as it could really happen.... There's no way in hell anyone will take my loved one away while I'm still standing. At that point, I will forgo the pistol in my hand and switch to the knife I always have on me an out right attack the individual holding my loved one. He will have to release them to stop my advance and at that point save his own skin for a individual who is intent on killing him. Once they are in a car and being taken away the chances are slim to none you will ever see um again alive, so it's here and now is where the fight ends.:comeandgetsome:

 

[Saber]

(from other threads) tell SO to drop and take the shot. I've heard most hollowpoints won't have the energy to seriously hurt a second person after going thru the first body. If they'd be dead anyway, nothing to lose. Practice at 50 yds, it's a real eye opener/confidence builder.

Good point and I agree. Anyway, I use to carry "git er' done" ammo for my snubs, although I'm starting to carry Safety Slugs more often. Yeah I know.., but still.
Regards, :smilie_waage:

 

[shooterX]

Tough call, I would probably scream, shout, throw something or anything to distract the perp and give my SO a chance to get out of the line of fire before taking a shot. I would hope the distraction and the fact that there is someone else to deal with may cause the perp to end the assault.

+1 This how Ithink I would handle this, as well as closing the distance between me and the BG as Iwas attempting to buy my SO time.